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THE POPE'S STRATAGEM : 

"ROME TO AMERICA! 



J! 




AN 



ADDRESS TO THE PROTESTANTS 



OF THE 



UNITED STATES, 

AGAINST 

PLACING THE POPE'S BLOCK OE MARBLE 

IN THE 

WASHINGTON MONUMENT; 




Containing also important Suggestions to both the Roman Catholic and 
Protestant Churches in our Country, relative to the Monument. 

BY JOHN F. WEISHAMPEL, SR., OF BALTIMORE, MD. 

FOR SALE BY THE HUNDRED OR DOZEN, BY THE PUBLISHER, AT THE 

PRINTING OFFICE NO. 50 N. SIXTH STREET— BACK OF 

FRANKLIN HALL— THIRD STORY, PHILAD'A. 

SOLD ALSO AT NO. 264 W. PRATT ST., BALTIMORE. 



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Price One Cent per copy, to pay for Paper and Printing. 
Newsmen and others supplied, at Periodical Depot, 125 N. Sixth St., above P 



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■ 

■ J a ■, ■ t 

TO THE READER— REMARKS TO THE EIGHTH EDITION. 



pVx 3 



This Address has been issued in pamphlet form for convenient preservation 
When you have read it, envelop it like a newspaper, pay a cent postage, and 
mail it to some friend in the country. The friends of our free institutions will 
wake up, and aid in ihe circulation of this and every other warning. 

The following resolution was unanimously adopted at the Southwark Mass 
Meeting, held on the 8th of March, as noticed below. 

Resolved, That this meeting recommend to all the friends of the Protest 
Measure the propriety of procuring copies of Mr. WeishampeTs interesting 
pamphlet Address to the people of the United States upon this\subject, and 
mailing them to their friends throughout the Country, to wake them up to 
action, before it be too late to avert the desecration of the Monument by pla- 
cing the Pope's block or any other Foreign material in its sacred walls. 

(0° Orders supplied at the low rate of 50 cents per hundred. Two copies 
can be mailed in one wrapper for 1 cent postage. An order from a distance, 
pre-paid, containing a 10 cent piece, addressed to J. F. Weishampel, at No. 4 
Lawrence Street, Philadelphia, or 264 W. Pratt Street, Baltimore, will be an- 
swered with six enveloped copies, postage pre-paid, to one address. 

G^ This humble Address has been the honored instrument that caused the 
first meeting to be held on the subject, which took place in old Southwark, 
Philadelphia— the birth-place of American Independence ;— and from thence 
the excitement, created by it, spread, and will continue to spread, till the 
whole Country shall rise up and protest against all foreign intermeddling with 
our own Washington Monument. Every one who takes a part in this pro- 
test will deserve to be honored as a true American patriot. 

Action— At an immense Protest Mass Meeting of Southwark, held in the 
Commissioners' Hall, March 8, 1852, a spirited Preamble and series of Reso- 
lutions, protesting against the placing of any Foreign material in the walls of 
the National Monument, come from whatever source they may, and demand- 
ing of the Monument Committee the recall of their letter of acceptance of the 
Pope's proffered block of marble from Rome, and declaring in favor of a pro- 
test block, if any but American material be used, were unanimously adopted. 

Spring Garden District also held a tremendous Protest Mass Meeting, on 
March 9th, where most spirited resolutions were adopted; and the other parts 
of the City of Independence will soon speak out. New York, Boston and 
Baltimore are likewise waking up to the matter ; and soon the ears of the 
Monument Committee will be made to ring with the thunder-toned voice of 
protest of an insulted and indignant people. 

Kensington District has also spoken out in a strong voice of protest against 
such despotic and hypocritical intermeddling. Measure, are on foot to hold a 
tremendous Protest Mass Meeting of the City and County of Philadelphia in 
Independence Square, on Easter Monday afternoon. Thus the Protest ball is 
rolling on, and before the Pope's block can be dressed and shipped, the entire 
Country will have protested against its incorporation into the Monument. 



[COPY-RIGHT.] 






ADDRESS. 

Fellow Countrymen: 

Permit me, an humble citizen of one of these United 
States, to call your attention to a subject that, as far as I have 
been able to learn, has failed to elicit the investigation of the 
Pulpit or the Press, and that to me appears to be one of no 
ordinary import, as touching the future destiny of our beloved 
Country. It behooves us, as friends of that Country, to watch, 
with a jealous eye, every effort that is made by the enemies of 
its free institutions, under whatever pretence, to subvert its 
government and destroy its liberties. I have reference to the 
proffer, by the Pope of Rome, of a block of marble for the Wash, 
inston National Monument, now in course of erection at the 
City of Washington, the Capital of the United States, which is 
intended to bear the inscription: "Rome to America." This 
proffer should wake up in every Protestant the spirit of inquiry 
as to the probable motives that actuate the Pope, and the ob- 
ject he may have in view. And let me seriously ask you, in 
the face of the history of Popery, Is there no cause to induce 
suspicion and alarm ? Let us look into the matter. 

The first thing that claims our attention, is the inscription 
upon the block: "Rome to America." Is this inscription ap- 
propriate? What, I ask, is the design of erecting the Monu- 
ment ? I understand it to be, to perpetuate the memory of the 
illustrious and immortal Washington, and to transmit to pos- 
terity a worthy memorial of the high honor which the Ameri- 
can people have always conferred upon him, as a pure patriot, 
a good man, and (as he is justly termed) the - father of his 
Country "—the deliverer, under God, of his Country from the 
galling yoke of foreign bondage and oppression. And this 
Monument is to be American— erected by the American peo- 
ple—a National and not a Universal memorial. But how does 
the inscription "Rome to America " correspond to this view . 
In the first place, it is a foreign contribution, thrust upon us 
| without an invitation or a precedent; and secondly, with an 



inappropriate inscription. " Rome to America. " Is it not the 

language of greeting from the one Country to the other? and 
does our Country require such a greeting from the Pope that ] 
an amicable relation may be continued ? or does America need 
such a token of pretended respect from Rome — the Roman 
Power? No! Then the inscription is not appropriate; and 
therefore the block has no claim to a place in the Monument. 
The inscription is now " Rome to America. " Suppose we 
ask whether the Pope designs that it shall ever be altered to 
Rome in America. It is feared by meny that the Papal throne 
will be removed to America. Indeed there was much talk of it 
in 1849. If it ever be located here, those significant words 
will be referred to, by his adherents, as an inspired prophecy of 
the change of location of that holy Power ! Then the Monu- 
ment would cease to be a Washington memorial — it would be 
converted into a trophy of Roman Papal victory — a pillar of 
triumph of Rome in America. For it is a fact that our Coun- 
try is being every year more densely populated by the Pope's 
zealous followers, and his menials ; and when we take into con- 
sideration that the Roman Power moves with deliberation, and 
looks far ahead, making calculations upon successes hundreds 
of years hence, and that it spares no means, nor " leaves one 
stone unturned " to accomplish its despotic designs, we have 
sufficient reasons to scan its apparent friendly approaches and 
guard against its encroachments in every shape and form. — 
We have already one Cardinal, a foreigner, a man who would, 
unquestionably, betray our Country into the hands of the holy 
Papa, if it were in his power to do so ; soon we will have more ; 
for his subjects are increasing here so rapidly that it will be 
graciously granted as a measure of justice to America! to have 
a greater representation in the holy conclave in Rome ! Next 
we may hear of his Holiness flying (under false pretence) "ifo 
America" for safety; and ultimately he may modestly erect 
his heaven-on-earth throne in Father Mathew's Cathedral 
in Washington, near by the base of the Monument bearing 
the predictive inscription " Rome to America. " Query. Had 
Father Mathew an eye to that when traveling through the U. 
States, often in great poverty ! who received many gifts of cha- 
rity to relieve his embarrassed situation, but who in the end 



was rich enough to buy the lot at a tremendous price and pre- 
sent it for the great Cathedral to be erected upon it? 

When the great holy Potentate 
Removes from Rome in royal state, 
And "to America" shall come, 
Where else but here will then be Rome ? 

So far as I have learned no other foreign power has made 
any similar proffer, and the likelihood is that none will, for the 
very good reason that the Monument is an American affair al- 
together. Especially do I suppose that none of the Emperors, 
Kings or Queens of other despotic or even limited monarchies 
will offer to do so, from the additional reason that it would be 

/ inconsistent with their character, and thus perhaps detrimental 
to their existing dignity at home. Their system of govern- 
ment is despotic, absolute, or, at best, anti-republican ; ours is 
republican and democratic; they all, more or less, play the 
lord over the people, while here the people are their own lords ; 
they curtail the people's liberties wherever they can, while our 
magnanimous Washington fought to give the peoph liberty ; and 
when he had it in his power to play the game of the Buona- 
partes and other usurpers, he proved himself the people's true 

\ friend, by not only filling the office of President with a father's 
care, and with honor to his Country and himself, but by laying 
down precepts and examples for the future welfare of the new 
Republic, over which he was the first man that was called to 
preside — and among those precepts and examples were these: 
To beware of foreign influence, not to meddle with the affairs 
of other nations, and not to have any man to serve more than 
two terms in the presidential chair. Their positions are so 
vastly different to these principles, that the thought does not 
probably occur to them to send blocks of stone for the Monu- 
ment. 

Such a man — although the monarchs of the world must do 
him the justice to admit his greatness and goodness — such a 
man they cannot so signally and perpetually honor (with con- 
sistency) as to place blocks of stone in the Monument, which is 
designed to stand to the end of time for the admiration of the 
people of all the nations under the sun — which shall be to our 
future generations the rain-bow token of salvation from for- 



eign bondage. No, they offer no such hypocritical offerings. 
But the subtle Pope — he passes over this inconsistency, and, as 
though the world were blind to it, offers to place one there. 
But he adopts an inscription that shall not convict him of du- 
plicity, and one that shall for the present appear as a gracious 
token of friendship from " Rome to America." It says nothing 
of Washington— nothing of liberty— nothing of human rights. 
And our Monument Committee, like a certain kind offish, that 
catches at any thing red, even if it be a bit of flannel on a hook, 
accept the proffer in great haste, and return thanks to this "god 
on earth" for his condescending consideration— for his hypo- 
critical contribution. I consider that they had no right to ac- 
cept it until the people had an opportunity to express their 
opinion upon the subject. I repeat again, that it is an Ameri- 
can National Monument, and we should be jealous as to who 
shall be permitted to place blocks in its structure; and no des- 
pots ought to be allowed to do so under any pretence whatever. 
Now let it be understood, that I am not opposing the Roman 
Catholic Church, but the Politico-Religious policy of the Roman 
Power. I have no objections to any church, as such, or all 
Protestant churches together, or Catholic and Protestant church- 
es conjointly, in our whole Country, contributing blocks or one 
general block of marble for this Monument. Indeed, I think it 
would be in good keeping with the Christian character we de- 
sire to maintain as a Nation, if they did so. Might they not 
all, or singly, with great propriety, furnish a block, with the 
inscription "To God be all the glory!" to be placed above all 
those bearing inscriptions ? This would not detract one iota j 
of honor from Washington. On the contrary, it would throw 
around his immortal name the hallowed glory of the Christian 
Religion, in the faith of which he lived and died. We as a 
people believe that God raised up our Washington to lead us 
out of bondage, and we look to that God with gratitude, and 
thank him for all his good providence, by which we have been 
made and preserved a free and happy Nation. It becomes 
us, but especially the people professing to be worshippers of 
that God, to say, in the language of the devout David of old : 
"Not unto us, O Lord ! not unto us, but unto Thy name give 
glory for thy mercy's sake." 



7 

Yes, fellow citizens, I desire to oppose the approaches, under 
the garb of friendship, of a Power that will, when it gains the de- 
signed and desired ascendency, burn our Bibles, bind our con- 
sciences, make slaves of us, and put us to the stake, the rack, 
or the dungeon, for attempting to exercise the free minds with 
which a gracious Creator has gifted us. It is true, we maj^ not 
live to suffer these things ; but our descendants, not many ge- 
nerations hence, may have cause to lament the supineness and 
imprudence of their too easily duped ancestors. If I should 
succeed in arousing you to the consideration of this subject, and 
cause you to save the Country from the insult referred to, I 
shall feel that I have done the cherished land of my birth a no- 
ble service, upon which my descendants may look with pride. 

The effects of this block, if placed in the Monument, will be 
a mortification to nearly every American Protestant who looks 
upon it; and its influence upon the zealous supporters of the 
Roman hierarchy will be tremendous — especially with foreign- 
ers. They will look through it at the Pope, and not at Wash- 
ington. I fancy I see a foreign papist winding his way up the 
quadrangular stairs, and he passes the hundreds of inscriptions 
with but little emotion ; but suddenly his eyes rest upon " Rome 
to America." Instantly he makes the sign of the cross, bows, 
and perhaps, exclaims, "Holy mother ! here is the blessed gift 
of his Holiness!" When he descends he will remember that 
inscription, though he should forget all the rest, and he will re- 
member it for life, and ever communicate to his children and 
others, that the holy Pope has honored Washington with a sa- 
cred block of marble, taken from the ancient Temple of Peace 
at Rome. And upon that assumed fact will they base the er- 
roneous presumption, that the Roman Power (dwelling in the 
Pope) is generous, liberal and friendly to human freedom and 
human rights. This will forever shut the ears of all the Ameri- 
can descendants of the papist against every argument and 
"act relative to the despotism and tyranny of the Roman Power, 
nd blind their eyes, so as to prevent them from seeing any 
anger— danger of losing American liberty and hitman rights- 
such liberty and rights as no country ever enjoys when the 
Papal influence sways it. 
What is to be done ? what can be done in this matter ?— 



Can we prevent the reception and placing the block in the sa- 
cred walls of the Monument ? Perhaps not : seeing that the 
Committee have accepted the proffer. But we can enter our 
solemn protest against it. Let the Protestants every where in 
the whole Land hold meetings and send to the Committee the 
protestations of those meetings against that measure; and if 
that will not induce the Committee to recall their acceptance, 
then let a protest block be furnished by us, to be placed by the. 
side of the objectionable stone, bearing an inscription by which 
all men may see that we are awake to the hypocrisy and 
schemes of that designing, crafty, subtle, far-seeing and far- 
reaching Power, which is ever grasping after the whole World, 
to sway its iron sceptre, with blood-stained hands, over the 
millions of its inhabitants. 

Will the Monument Committee heed such a protest? I am 
fully persuaded they would sooner incur the displeasure of the 
Pope, by recalling their letter, than that of a great majority of 
their fellow countrvmen, by placing the objectionable stone m 
the building— which has Justice for its foundation, Freedom for 
its crowning stone, and Human Happiness for its glory. No, 
they will not, they dare not so insult the American people. I 
repeat, let the American Catholics put in a block of stone as a 
church testimonial, if they choose, and so every other church ; 
but O keep the foreign influence, especially of avowed deadly 
enemies to human rights, and above all, the Roman Power, from 
desecrating that pure pillar, so sacredly dedicated to the memo- 
ry of the good and great Washington! the friend of human 
rights, andthe foe to despotism and tyranny ! Fellow Country- 
men, in the name of all that you hold dear in this world, let 
its high-towering column not be blemished by a foreign, despot- 
ic, and tyrannical hypocrite's hand, or a hypocrite's gift! 

Philadelphia, near Independence Hall, ? 
Washington's Birth-day, Feb. 22, 1852. 5 

Let every true friend to our common Country aid in speedily circulating! 
this warning throughout the land, that all may be roused before the Pope shall 
have placed his block in the Freedom Monument. Be wide awake!-W atcn\ 




